Charles Lang
Encyclopedia
Charles Bryant Lang, Jr., A.S.C. (March 27, 1902, Bluff, Utah
– April 3, 1998, Santa Monica, California
) was an American cinematographer
.
Early in his career he worked with the Akeley camera, a gyroscope-mounted "pancake" camera designed by Carl Akeley
for outdoor action shots. Lang's first credits were as co-cinematographer on the silent film
s The Night Patrol (1926) and The Loves of Ricardo (1927).
After completing Tom Sawyer
for Paramount Pictures
in 1930, he continued working at the studio for more than twenty years. The style of lighting he introduced in A Farewell to Arms
became heavily identified with all of Paramount's films during the 1930s and 1940s, though he occasionally worked for other studios, for instance on The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
(1947).
In 1951 he began the second phase of his career, this time as a free-lance cinematographer. His credits include The Big Heat
(1953), Sabrina
(1954), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
(1957), The Matchmaker
(1958), Some Like It Hot
(1959), The Magnificent Seven
(1960), How the West Was Won
(1962), Charade (1963), Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
(1969), and Butterflies Are Free
(1972).
Lang received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Cinematographers
in 1991, for a career which included at least 114 feature films.
for the most cinematography Oscars nominations
ever.
, who is best known for her role as Brooke Logan Forrester
on the CBS soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful
.
His daughter is actress Judy Lang.
Bluff, Utah
Bluff is a census-designated place in San Juan County, Utah, United States. The population was 320 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bluff is located at , in the scenic and very sparsely populated southeastern Utah canyonlands of the Colorado Plateau.According to the United States Census Bureau, the...
– April 3, 1998, Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
) was an American cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
.
Early in his career he worked with the Akeley camera, a gyroscope-mounted "pancake" camera designed by Carl Akeley
Carl Akeley
Carl Ethan Akeley was a taxidermist, sculptor, biologist, conservationist, inventor, and nature photographer, noted for his contributions to American museums, most notably to the Field Museum of Natural History and the American Museum of Natural History...
for outdoor action shots. Lang's first credits were as co-cinematographer on the silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
s The Night Patrol (1926) and The Loves of Ricardo (1927).
After completing Tom Sawyer
Tom Sawyer (1930 film)
Tom Sawyer is a 1930 American drama film directed by John Cromwell. The screenplay by Grover Jones, William Slavens McNutt, and Sam Mintz is based on the 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain....
for Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
in 1930, he continued working at the studio for more than twenty years. The style of lighting he introduced in A Farewell to Arms
A Farewell to Arms (1932 film)
A Farewell to Arms is a 1932 American romantic drama film directed by Frank Borzage, and starring Gary Cooper and Helen Hayes. The screenplay by Oliver H.P...
became heavily identified with all of Paramount's films during the 1930s and 1940s, though he occasionally worked for other studios, for instance on The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir romantic fantasy film starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison. It is based on a 1945 novel written by Josephine Leslie under the pseudonym of R. A. Dick...
(1947).
In 1951 he began the second phase of his career, this time as a free-lance cinematographer. His credits include The Big Heat
The Big Heat
The Big Heat is a 1953 film noir directed by Fritz Lang, starring Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame, and Lee Marvin. It is about a cop who takes on the crime syndicate that controls his city after the brutal murder of his beloved wife. The film was written by former crime reporter Sydney Boehm based on a...
(1953), Sabrina
Sabrina (1954 film)
Sabrina is a 1954 comedy-romance film directed by Billy Wilder, adapted for the screen by Wilder, Samuel A. Taylor, and Ernest Lehman from Taylor's play Sabrina Fair...
(1954), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957 film)
The film was based on a real event which took place on October 26, 1881. It was directed by John Sturges and featuring a screenplay written by novelist Leon Uris, and the movie's supporting cast included Rhonda Fleming, John Ireland, Jo Van Fleet, Martin Milner, Dennis Hopper, Jack Elam, Lee Van...
(1957), The Matchmaker
The Matchmaker (film)
The Matchmaker is a 1958 American comedy film directed by Joseph Anthony. The screenplay by John Michael Hayes is based on the 1955 play of the same name by Thornton Wilder.-Plot:...
(1958), Some Like It Hot
Some Like It Hot
Some Like It Hot is an American comedy film, made in 1958 and released in 1959, which was directed by Billy Wilder and starred Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon and George Raft. The supporting cast includes Joe E. Brown, Pat O'Brien and Nehemiah Persoff. The film is a remake by Wilder and I....
(1959), The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven is an American Western film directed by John Sturges, and released in 1960. It is a fictional tale of a group of seven American gunmen who are hired to protect a small agricultural village in Mexico from a group of marauding Mexican bandits...
(1960), How the West Was Won
How the West Was Won (film)
How the West Was Won is a 1962 American epic Western film. The picture was one of the last "old-fashioned" epic films made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to enjoy great success. It follows four generations of a family as they move ever westward, from western New York state to the Pacific Ocean...
(1962), Charade (1963), Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice is a 1969 comedy-drama film directed by Paul Mazursky. It stars Natalie Wood, Robert Culp, Elliott Gould and Dyan Cannon....
(1969), and Butterflies Are Free
Butterflies Are Free
Butterflies Are Free is a 1972 film based on a play by Leonard Gershe. The 1972 film was produced by M.J. Frankovich, released by Columbia Pictures, directed by Milton Katselas and adapted for the screen by Gershe. It was released on 6 July, 1972 in the USA.Goldie Hawn and Edward Albert starred...
(1972).
Lang received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Cinematographers
American Society of Cinematographers
The American Society of Cinematographers is an educational, cultural, and professional organization. It is not a labor union, and it is not a guild. Membership is by invitation and is extended only to directors of photography and special effects experts with distinguished credits in the film...
in 1991, for a career which included at least 114 feature films.
Academy Awards
Lang won an Academy Award the second time he was nominated, early in his career; he received a total of 18 nominations, tying with Leon ShamroyLeon Shamroy
Leon Shamroy, A.S.C. was an American film cinematographer. Together with Charles Lang, he holds the record for most number of Academy Award nominations for Cinematography...
for the most cinematography Oscars nominations
Academy Award for Best Cinematography
The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work in one particular motion picture.-History:...
ever.
Nominations
According to IMDb, Lang also received Oscar nominations for the following films:- The Right to Love (1930)
- Arise, My LoveArise, My LoveArise, My Love is a 1940 American romantic comedy film made by Paramount Pictures, directed by Mitchell Leisen, written by Billy Wilder, Charles Brackett and Jacques Théry, and starring Claudette Colbert and Ray Milland....
(1940) - SundownSundown (film)Sundown is a 1941 war film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Bruce Cabot and Gene Tierney. The film's adventure story, set against a war backdrop was well received by critics, earning three Academy Award nominations and was a box office success....
(1941) - So Proudly We Hail!So Proudly We Hail!So Proudly We Hail! is a 1943 film directed by Mark Sandrich, and starring Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard – who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance – and Veronica Lake...
(1943) - The UninvitedThe Uninvited (1944 film)The Uninvited is a 1944 American supernatural mystery/romance film directed by Lewis Allen. It is based on the Dorothy Macardle novel Uneasy Freehold.Charles Lang was nominated for a 1945 Academy Award for Best Black and White Cinematography.-Plot:...
(1944) - The Ghost and Mrs. MuirThe Ghost and Mrs. MuirThe Ghost and Mrs. Muir romantic fantasy film starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison. It is based on a 1945 novel written by Josephine Leslie under the pseudonym of R. A. Dick...
(1947) - A Foreign AffairA Foreign AffairA Foreign Affair is a 1948 American romantic comedy film directed by Billy Wilder. The screenplay by Wilder, Charles Brackett, and Richard L. Breen is based on a story by David Shaw adapted by Robert Harari...
(1948) - Sudden FearSudden FearSudden Fear is a 1952 RKO Radio Pictures feature film starring Joan Crawford and Jack Palance in a noir-ish tale about a successful woman who marries a murderous man. The screenplay by Lenore J. Coffee and Robert Smith was based upon the novel by Edna Sherry. Sudden Fear was directed by David...
(1952) - SabrinaSabrina (1954 film)Sabrina is a 1954 comedy-romance film directed by Billy Wilder, adapted for the screen by Wilder, Samuel A. Taylor, and Ernest Lehman from Taylor's play Sabrina Fair...
(1954)
- Queen BeeQueen Bee (film)Queen Bee is a 1955 drama film starring Joan Crawford, John Ireland, Fay Wray, Betsy Palmer, and Barry Sullivan in a story about a family dominated by a ruthless woman. The screenplay by Ranald MacDougall was based upon a novel by Edna L. Lee. The film was directed by Ranald MacDougall and produced...
(1955) - Separate TablesSeparate Tables (film)Separate Tables is a 1958 American drama film based on two one-act plays by Terence Rattigan that were collectively known by this name. It was directed by Delbert Mann, and adapted by Rattigan, John Gay and an uncredited John Michael Hayes. Mary Grant designed the film's costumes.The film took the...
(1958) - Some Like It HotSome Like It HotSome Like It Hot is an American comedy film, made in 1958 and released in 1959, which was directed by Billy Wilder and starred Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon and George Raft. The supporting cast includes Joe E. Brown, Pat O'Brien and Nehemiah Persoff. The film is a remake by Wilder and I....
(1959) - The Facts of LifeThe Facts of Life (film)The Facts of Life is a 1960 romantic comedy starring Bob Hope and Lucille Ball as middle-aged people who have an affair despite being married to other people. Written, directed, and produced by the longtime Hope associates Melvin Frank and Norman Panama, the film was more serious than many other...
(1960) - One-Eyed JacksOne-Eyed JacksOne-Eyed Jacks, a 1961 Western, is the only film directed by actor Marlon Brando, who also played its lead character, Rio.The film was originally to be directed by Stanley Kubrick and Sam Peckinpah...
(1961) - How the West Was WonHow the West Was Won (film)How the West Was Won is a 1962 American epic Western film. The picture was one of the last "old-fashioned" epic films made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to enjoy great success. It follows four generations of a family as they move ever westward, from western New York state to the Pacific Ocean...
(1962) - Bob & Carol & Ted & AliceBob & Carol & Ted & AliceBob & Carol & Ted & Alice is a 1969 comedy-drama film directed by Paul Mazursky. It stars Natalie Wood, Robert Culp, Elliott Gould and Dyan Cannon....
(1969) - Butterflies Are FreeButterflies Are FreeButterflies Are Free is a 1972 film based on a play by Leonard Gershe. The 1972 film was produced by M.J. Frankovich, released by Columbia Pictures, directed by Milton Katselas and adapted for the screen by Gershe. It was released on 6 July, 1972 in the USA.Goldie Hawn and Edward Albert starred...
(1972)
Personal life
One of Lang's granddaughters is actress Katherine Kelly LangKatherine Kelly Lang
Katherine Kelly Lang is an American actress. She is known for her role as Brooke Logan Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful .-Personal life:...
, who is best known for her role as Brooke Logan Forrester
Brooke Logan
Brooke Logan Forrester is a fictional character from the CBS Daytime soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful. She has been portrayed by Katherine Kelly Lang since the series debuted in March 1987, although Catherine Hickland and Sandra Ferguson briefly filled in on two occasions when Lang was on...
on the CBS soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful
The Bold and the Beautiful
The Bold and the Beautiful is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS Daytime. It premiered on March 23, 1987....
.
His daughter is actress Judy Lang.